CaptainPad
From PuneTech
CaptainPad is a wireless system that uses handheld devices to speed up order processing in restaurants. It is developed and marketed by Wings iNet Technologies.
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[edit] Overview
The system consists of a server, wireless access point, printers and handheld devices. The restaurant menu is loaded on handheld devices, which are given to the captains who take customers' orders. After noting the order on the handheld device with a stylus, the captain presses an order tab, and the order instantly gets printed on printers installed in the kitchen, and also flashes on the waiters' screen.
[edit] Benefits
Normally when a customer walks in to a restaurant, people in the restaurant's loop like the rush manager, captain, waiter, kitchen supervisor, and cashier are alerted one after the other with varying time intervals, resulting in gaps in the loop. This creates a delay in service for the customer and loss of valuable time for the restaurant owner. But with the use of CaptainPad, the loop is complete the moment the customer is seated at the table. This eliminates the waiting time for the customer, who gets a quick and efficient service
The cooks start working on a customers order within a minute after the order is taken. This earlier took nearly 5-10 minutes as the waiter had to take the order and then go to the kitchen, while serving other customers on the way.
The kitchen supervisor's job is also simplified. Earlier, he had to take order slips from multiple waiters and give it to different cooks and also keep a check on the prepared dishes going out of the kitchen. Many times if an order slip got misplaced the waiter had to go back to the customer to get a fresh order. All this is avoided with the CaptainPad.
This system also generates different types of management information system reports to monitor and control the whole restaurant.
If the owner of the restaurant has a GPRS mobile phone, the complete information about the restaurant operations would be available on his mobile device, irrespective of the location.
Restaurants are reporting that after the installation of the CaptainPad, the table recurrence ratio has also gone up - i.e. they serve more customers per table per day than earlier.
[edit] Cost
Installation of the system costs between Rs 2.5 lakh and Rs 6 lakh depending on the number of captains which the restaurant has.
[edit] Customers
These are some of the early customers
- Rajwada, Pune
- Green Park, Pune
- Vinanti, Goa
They also have one customer in Nagpur. They are targeting 100 installations across the country by December, 2008.
[edit] Articles
- CaptainPad a handheld-based system makes dining smoother, The Economic Times
- Wings iNet unveils new tool for hotels, restaurants, The Hindu Business Line
- Automating Resaturant Order Processing PuneTech Blog
